The patcher object encapsulates a subpatch

In programming, it’s often useful to divide a task into parts, and consider the overall program as a combination of small tasks. Each small task can be considered a subset of the overall program, to be called upon when needed. In programming lingo, that’s often called a “subroutine” or a “function”.

In Max, you can encapsulate a patch consisting of several objects inside a single Max patcher object (which can be abbreviated as p). The contents of that patcher object can be thought of as a “subpatch” of the main patcher. Inside the patcher object, you can create inlet and outlet objects, which will appear as inlets and outlets of the patcher object in the main patch.

You can view and edit the contents of a patcher object by double-clicking on it in the locked patcher window.

A patcher object could potentially even include other nested patcher objects. Dividing your overall task into separate tasks (subroutines) and encapsulating each one as an object is a good way to organize your program.